Picket fence cap

ABSTRACT

The present invention is a decorative end cap which is mountable to the top portion of fence pickets. The decorative end cap is manufactured separately from the picket and is mountable to the top end of the picket after the picket fence has been manufactured to give the picket fence a more decorative appearance. The top cap consists of a substantially flat top portion, having a top surface, opposing sides and opposing ends. The top cap also has a bottom portion which is provided with a cavity, configured to receive the top end of the wooden fence picket. A decorative member is mounted on the top surface of the flat portion and extends upwardly from the flat portion between the opposing sides. The cap also has a mounting bracket, which is adapted to mount the cap on the top end of the picket.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The invention relates generally to picket end caps forconstructing decorative picket fences.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Picket fences are generally used to enclose residentialproperties. Traditionally, picket fences have been constructed from aseries of broad wooden planks (referred to as pickets), mounted in avertical orientation between two or more posts. The planks are usuallymounted directly to long cross members, the ends of which were securelyattached to the posts. To discourage people or animals from attemptingto climb over these picket fences, the tops of the picket portion of thefences were pointed. Due to the rustic appeal associated with picketfences, the construction has generally remained of wood.

[0003] Building picket fences is generally a labour intensive exercisedue in part to the construction of the decorative pickets forming thefences. In order to capture the rustic appearance of traditional picketfences, a person attempting to manufacture a picket fence would have togo through the laborious process of cutting each picket to size and thencutting a decorative pointed top onto the picket. Since manufacturingsuch a picket would also require finishing the decorative end of thepicket by routing and sanding the edges, the cost of picket fences arerelatively high. If a distinctive design, such as an ace of spades isdesired for the decorative end of the pickets, then the constructionbecomes more elaborate and expensive. Due to the expense involved inmanufacturing pickets with decorative tops, a majority of picket fencesnow manufactured in kit form are not provided with decorative pointedpickets. Therefore, there is a need for a system of picket fenceconstruction which is both easy to manufacture and cost effective.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0004] It is an object of the present invention to overcome thedrawbacks of the prior art by providing a decorative end cap which ismountable to the top portion of fence pickets. The decorative end cap ismanufactured separately from the picket and is mountable to the top endof the picket after the picket fence has been manufactured to give thepicket fence a more decorative appearance. The top cap consists of asubstantially flat top portion, having a top surface, opposing sides andopposing ends. The top cap also has a bottom portion which is providedwith a cavity, configured to receive the top end of the wooden fencepicket. A decorative member is mounted on the top surface of the flatportion and extends upwardly from the flat portion between the opposingsides. The cap also has a mounting bracket, which is adapted to mountthe cap on the top end of the picket.

[0005] Other objects and advantages of the invention will be evidentfrom the following detailed description when read in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings which illustrate the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0006]FIG. 1. Is a perspective view of a fence construction showing thetop cap of the present invention mounted on a fence picket.

[0007]FIG. 2. Is a front view, partly in cross-section, of the fence capof the present invention.

[0008]FIG. 3. Is a side view, partly in cross section, of the presentinvention taken along line A-A of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Referring firstly to FIG. 1, a picket fence shown as item 10generally consists of a series of vertically oriented pickets 12, whichare attached to horizontal cross-members 14 having ends 16 which arerigidly attached to fence post 18. The end cap made in accordance withthe present invention is shown generally as item 22 and is securelymounted to end 20 of picket 12, via mounting elements 30 and 28. Cap 22consists of bottom portion 24 and decorative member 26 mounted securelyonto portion 24.

[0010] Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, cap 22 consists of a substantiallyflat top portion 30 with a top surface 31, having opposing sides 33 and35 (see FIG. 3) and opposing ends 37 and 39 (see 1 FIG. 2). A bottomportion 24 extends below top portion 30 and is provided with a cavity 42which is configured to fit on top of end 20 of picket 12. As best seenin FIG. 2, flat portion 30 has opposing side edges 33 and 35 anddownwardly depending side edge walls 38 and 41, extending integrallydownward from edges 33 and 35, respectively. Side walls 38 and 41 areprovided with ridges 40 which extend into cavity 42 and are configuredto grip the end of the fence picket. As best seen in FIG. 2, flatportion 30 has opposing ends 39 and 37 and downwardly extending endwalls 43 and 32, integrally extending from ends 39 and 37, respectively.Cavity 42 is defined by walls 38, 41, 32 and 43. Decorative portion 26extends upwardly from top. surface 31 of substantially flat portion 30and is preferably positioned between side edges 33 and 35 and opposingends 39 and 37. Decorative portion 26 may consist of any desireddecorative features such as a point, an ace of spade, a ball or someother decorative design. Top surface 31 is also provided with apertures34 on either side of decorative portion 26. Apertures 34 are dimensionto permit a mounting element such as a screw or nail to pass throughaperture 34 in order to rigidly mount cap 22 to the top edge of thefence picket. It is important to position apertures 34 on both sides ofdecorative portion 26 to ensure the proper mounting of cap 22. If onlyone aperture 34 were provided, then it is likely that the force causedby the fasteners used to mount the cap will force the cap to rest at aslight angle relative to the rest of the picket. For aesthetic reasons,it is important to mount the cap such that decorative portion 26 isco-axial with picket 12, especially if the decorative portion consistsof a point. By placing mounting apertures 34 on both sides of decorativeportion 26, it is easier to securely position cap 22 such that thedecorative portion is co-axial with picket 12.

[0011] It is possible to construct a picket top cap without end walls 32and 43, although these end walls do give the finished product a moreesthetically appealing appearance. If end walls 32 and 43 are notprovided, then the end cap may be less expensive to manufacture.

[0012] A specific embodiment of the present invention has beendisclosed; however, several variations of the disclosed embodiment couldbe envisioned within the scope of this invention.

[0013] It is to be understood that the present invention is not limitedto the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and allembodiments within the scope of the following claims.

1. A top cap for capping a top end of a wooden fence picket having aopposite front and back faces, opposite side ends, a diameter and awidth, the top cap comprising a substantially flat top portion having atop surface, opposing sides and opposing ends, a bottom portion having acavity adapted to receive the top end of the wooden fence picket, 9 adecorative member mounted to the top surface of the flat portion, saiddecorative member extending upwardly from the flat portion between theopposing sides, mounting bracket adapted to mount the top cap to the topend of the picket.
 2. A top cap as defined in claim 1 wherein the bottomportion comprises a pair of edge portions located on the opposing sidesof the flat portion, said edge portions extending integrally downwardfrom the opposite sides of the flat portion, the cavity being defined bya distance between the edge portions, said distance being selected suchthat the top end of the fence picket can be snugly retained between theedge portions.
 3. A top cap as defined in claim 1 wherein the topsurface has an opening adapted to receive a retainer element forsecuring the cap to the end of the picket.
 4. A top cap as defined inclaim 2 further comprising a pair of end walls, said end wallsintegrally and downwardly extending from the opposing ends of the flatsurface, the edge portions and the end walls defining the cavity.
 5. Atop cap as defined in claim 4 wherein the mounting bracket comprises anaperture located on the top surface, said aperture configured to receivea retainer element, said retainer element adapted to mount the cap tothe end of the picket.
 6. A top cap as defined in claim 5 wherein themounting bracket comprises a pair of apertures, each aperture located onone side of the decorative member, each aperture configured to receive aretainer element, said retainer element adapted to mount the cap to theend of the picket.
 7. A top cap as defined in claim 2 wherein themounting bracket comprises a ridge located on at least one of the edgeportions, said ridge extending into the cavity.
 8. A top cap as definedin claim 4 wherein the mounting bracket comprises an aperture located onthe end walls, said aperture configured to receive a retainer element,said retainer element adapted to mount the cap to the end of the picket.